Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is the largest publisher of comic books in the United States. It owns many of the most popular characters in comic books, including Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Incredible Hulk, Captain America, and the Fantastic Four. As a player in the history of the comic book industry, Marvel's significance is equaled only by its longtime rival and chief competitor, DC Comics. Despite being one of the oldest comic book companies, Marvel did not emerge as a truly distinctive and influential creative force in the field until the 1960s. Since then, however, the Marvel style has virtually defined the character of mainstream American comic books.
The company that became known as Marvel Comics began its operation in 1939, when a young pulp magazine publisher named Martin Goodman decided to enter the fledgling comic book business. Taking note of DC's recent success with Superman, Goodman purchased several superhero stories from one of several comic-art studios supplying material to publishers. Soon thereafter, Goodman set up his own comic book production staff under the editorial direction of his teenage nephew Stanley Lieberman, who also wrote comic book stories under the name of Stan Lee. The company was initially called Timely Comics, but also referred to itself by the title of its first publication, Marvel Comics.
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